An HVAC damper is a manually operated door that can be opened or closed to adjust the amount of airflow in a particular room’s ductwork. Dampers are typically located at or near the junction where a smaller branch supply duct forks away from the main trunk duct.
Dampers balance the flow of conditioned air across your entire system without manually restricting airflow into certain rooms and increasing it in others. Additionally, rooms that receive too little or too much airflow frequently cause energy efficiency and air quality shortfalls.
When troubleshooting inconsistent heating or cooling issues in certain rooms, a qualified HVAC technician can help by measuring airflow at the supply vent and comparing it to the airflow volume in the return duct. If measurements indicate an imbalance, your technician will investigate the cause.
- First, your ductwork will be visually inspected for disconnected spans or flexible duct segments that are kinked or collapsed.
- Afterwards, your technician will locate your room dampers by tracing the supply ducts. This can be a challenge in older homes where renovations might have changed the standard duct layout. “Stealth dampers” can be hard to find.
- A typical manual HVAC damper includes a plastic handle on the exterior of the duct. Rotating the handle lets you open or close the damper. While dampers generally incorporate some locking mechanism to secure the door at a desired setting, as duct components age and mechanisms loosen, the damper may open or close completely.
- By checking airflow measurements while fine-tuning the damper position, your technician will return the damper to the proper setting to restore balanced airflow into the affected room. Your damper will then be tightly secured to ensure continued operation.
If you suspect home comfort or efficiency issues due to a bad HVAC damper, schedule an appointment with the pros at Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Lorain, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about HVAC dampers and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.
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Energy 1 Heating & Air Conditioning
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Serving the Lorain, OH Area